Micah
by FaithinBones
Summary: Micah has been working at the Jeffersonian for a long time and one of his favorite people working there is Dr. Temperance Brennan.


(The Hole in the Heart/ The Change in the Game)

A/N: I was watching 'The Doctor in the Photo" the other day and this story popped into my head. I hope you like it.

I don't own Bones.

Oooooooooooooooooooo

She was sad of course that a young man had died, but her life had recently made a great leap from where she had been just a few short weeks ago and it left her torn between sadness and happiness. The death of Vincent Nigel-Murray had been quite a shock and one she hadn't been prepared for. To watch the blood pump out of the young man with each heartbeat as he struggled to stay alive long enough for help to arrive, to not leave had been deeply disturbing. Somehow during the event, she had confused his pleas with the universe with a plea to her to stay and it took Booth's insight to help her understand what had really transpired.

It was also Booth who had comforted her and in that moment, Brennan had had her epiphany. Brodsky was shooting at Booth, but had killed her intern by mistake. His intended target had been Booth. She had come close to losing her best friend and that was so painful as to almost be unthinkable and yet she did think about it. She thought about it a lot.

Micah noticed Brennan working in her office, a look of introspection on her face. Curious, he had entered the office and greeted her. "Hi, Dr. Brennan . . . I heard about Mr. Nigel-Murray. I'm sorry for your loss."

"I wasn't related to him, Micah." Brennan was uncertain why Micah felt it was necessary to commiserate with her. "He was just my intern."

With kindness, Micah placed a flower on her desk and stepped back. "That's true, but you've known him for a while now and he was one of your students. You suffered a loss and I'm just trying to show you empathy. It's what friends do when they suffer a loss."

Surprised, Brennan picked up the lily from her desk top. "You consider me a friend?"

"Of course, aren't we?" Micah flashed her smile. "We've known each other for a long time. During that time, we've had a lot of conversations, shared cups of coffee and shared some confidences. I think that's the definition of friendship, don't you?"

His words resonated with her and she appreciated them. "Yes, that's true. I think it's possible we are friends, even though I am an anthropologist and you are a security guard. We really shouldn't have anything in common and yet we converse very easily. As I've told you in the past, you are the only one I know whom I really understand. Even with Booth, sometimes I don't have a clue what he's saying to me. I just hear static . . . Also, you have allowed me to unburden myself on you when there was no one else to talk to . . . Yes, I think we are friends."

A radiant smile on his face, Micah nodded his head. "That's what I thought. That's why I brought you a flower. Friends do that for each other. You lost someone in your life and that flower is symbolic of my sympathy towards you." Micah sat down on the chair in front of her desk. "I went to a lecture once about the language of flowers. I learned that the lily symbolizes the innocence that has been restored to the soul of the departed. The white lily expresses majesty and purity. I thought that was appropriate for Mr. Nigel-Murray."

Brennan stared at the flower and thought of her intern. "He was . . . yes, perhaps you're right. I didn't realize that you knew Vincent."

"I didn't, not really." Micah stood up and checked his watch. "I'd seen him around, but he was always busy when he worked late. I talked to him a couple of times, but I didn't want to bother him. He seemed like a nice kid though. He sure enjoyed life."

"He was and he did." Brennan stared at the lily. "His death is a tragedy. He had the potential to surpass my expertise one day. He was brilliant. I've only had one intern that was as brilliant as Vincent and that was Zach."

"Mr. Addy." Micah sighed. "He was too detached from the world, Dr. Brennan. You can't cut yourself off from the world, from human attachments and not lose a part of your humanity . . . Vincent was definitely a part of this world and he valued his position in it."

Filled with a sense of loss for both Zach and Vincent, Brennan sighed. "Yes, you're right." Unable to fix the past, Brennan shrugged her shoulders. "I will miss Vincent."

"Me too, Doc." Micah moved over to the door and stopped. "He knew a lot of stuff. I've never known anyone as informed as he was. His head was filled with a lot of facts. It was very impressive. He probably could have given lectures on a lot of things. I'd have gone to them."

"Yes, although a lot of times there was no relevance in the facts he contributed to our conversations." Brennan had found that to be one of the interns' more annoying traits.

Moving out of the doorway into the hallway, Micah chuckled. "Actually that's what I liked about him. He saw the relevance in everything. He loved knowledge for knowledge's sake."

Her thoughts on her intern, Brennan moved the lily closer to her nose and sniffed its aroma. "Yes, he did."

Ooooooooooooooooooooo

Booth entered his partner's office and started to complain. "Bones, you were supposed to meet me at your place 90 minutes ago. I knew I'd find you here. It's 9:27. Why are you here?"

"Why didn't you call me?" Brennan was surprised to see Booth standing in her office. "Metro sent over a body they found near the Jeffersonian Memorial and they need an identification. I thought I would begin some preliminary work on the corpse and have my intern de-flesh the body in the morning."

"I tried to call you, but I kept going to voicemail." Annoyed, Booth sat down on the chair near her desk. "You could have at least answered the phone or called me back."

Quickly checking her phone, Brennan realized she had turned it off. "I turned it off. I was trying to get as much done as possible before I left for the evening."

Since he really didn't want to argue, Booth crossed his arms, stared at the lily sitting on her desk and softened his voice. "We're in a relationship, Bones. You working on stuff is fine, it really is, but when we agree to meet up somewhere you should at least tell me you can't make it."

Embarrassed, Brennan turned towards her PC and sent the email out she had been working on when Booth had interrupted her. "Yes, of course." Once that was done, she logged off her PC. "I'm not used to having to tell my whereabouts to someone. I should have warned you that I was working late."

He knew they were both struggling to figure out how their relationship was going to work and communication was one of their main problems. "It's okay. Just give me a heads up the next time that's all. I hung around your apartment for over an hour and I got bored, so I came over here to see what you were doing. I think we need to put a bigger TV in your apartment. That TV you have is so small I can barely see the puck on the ice when I watch hockey games. Maybe you can buy a 30 inch or maybe a 40 inch. I can watch games when I'm there by myself . . . Where'd you get the flower?"

As she stood up, Brennan picked up the flower and smiled. "Micah gave it to me. He was commiserating with me over my loss of Vincent."

"Micah . . . um, he's that security guard you told me about." Booth had heard Brennan talk about him numerous times in the past. Apparently he was a friend of hers and had been for a long time. "I guess I've never met him."

"Probably not." Brennan removed her purse from the top drawer in her desk. "He works late hours and makes rounds throughout the Jeffersonian, not just the Lab."

Since she was ready to go, Booth stood up, pulled her jacket from the coat tree and helped her put it on, careful not to crush the lily. "Well, let's go home. I have some Thai food ready for us. It's cold now, so we'll have to heat it up."

Brennan kissed Booth and smiled. "I am sorry, Booth. I will call you in the future if I have to work late."

His hands on her hips, Booth returned her kiss. "We'll get this figured out, Bones. You didn't do anything wrong. We just need to keep our lines of communication open that's all."

As she walked towards the door, Brennan realized that Booth was right. "Yes, we must maintain proper communication between us."

ooooooooooooooooooo

Curious, Booth decided to run a check on Micah. He had struggled to remember the man's entire name, but he'd finally remembered it was Micah Leggat. Logged into the FBI database, he had become concerned when he couldn't find any information on Micah. The man didn't have a driver's license nor had he been in the military. He had no police record nor was he registered to vote. The most disturbing thing of all to Booth was the fact that Micah was not listed as an employee at the Jeffersonian and yet he'd apparently been working as a guard there for years. Alarmed, Booth called Cam.

 _Cam Saroyan._

"It's Booth." Not sure how to ask without admitting that he was doing a background check on a Jeffersonian employee, Booth cleared his throat and realized that he didn't care. _Fuck it._ "Cam, I was checking on an employee working over there. A guy named Micah Leggat."

 _Micah Leggat? I'm pretty sure I know everyone's name in the security department, but I don't know a Micah. Is he new?_

"Not according to Bones." Filled with worry, Booth closed the file he had open on his PC. "She's talked about him a few times over the years. He's been working there for years. Longer than Bones has."

 _I'm pretty sure we don't have a Micah working here, Booth._

Slowly blowing out air between his puffed out cheeks, Booth finally stood up. "You guys have a problem, Cam. I'm coming over there."

 _Alright, but I think you may have just misunderstood Dr. Brennan._

"I don't think so, Cam." Booth pulled his gun from his desk drawer and placed it in his holster. "I'm coming over right now, we need to talk."

Ooooooooooooooooooooo

"I don't get it." Booth was pacing in Cam's office and the more he paced the more agitated he became. "Bones has mentioned the guy off and on since I've known her. He's a security guard and he works late hours, but when I ran a check on him, I found out he doesn't exist."

Curious, Cam cocked her head to the side. "Why run a check on him now? What triggered that particular action?"

Since honesty worked best when he was dealing with Cam, Booth stopped his pacing and leaned against the wall behind Cam's desk. "Well . . . he gave Bones a flower. He told her it was for her loss of Vincent. I've never met the guy and I got curious. I've been here all hours of the day and night and I've never once caught a glimpse of the guy. I wanted to see what kind of man he was, but shit . . . he doesn't work here. Cam you've got a guy working at the Jeffersonian and no one knows it. It's ridiculous. He has to be up to something. I mean how does he have access to this place if he isn't an employee? What kind of security department do you people have if just anyone can move around this building as an employee and no one questions it?"

Her concern just as great as his, Cam turned and made a few inquiries in the Jeffersonian employee database. After a few frustrating moments, Cam exhaled and turned to stare at her friend. "The only Micah Leggat I can find is an employee that used to work here about thirty years ago. He died in 1981. He died of a heart attack in the Greco-Roman exhibit."

A cold chill running through Booth, he walked over to the chair next to Cam's desk and sat down. "Someone must be impersonating him. You need to let security know so they can look out for the guy."

Worried about Brennan's safety, Cam grimly nodded her head. "We need to tell Dr. Brennan so she's aware of the problem."

Not sure why, Booth reached out, placed his hand over her hand and shook his head. "No, we shouldn't. She's not in danger. The guy has been hanging around her for as long as I've known her. If he was going to hurt her he'd have done it by now. I don't want to upset her. She's upset enough because of Vincent and this would just be piling on."

"Well when we catch him, she's going to know then." Cam wasn't sure Booth's idea was a good one. "She really needs to know what's going on."

"But that's the point." Booth gripped her hand. "We don't know what's going on. Maybe the guy just loves the museum and he doesn't care if he gets paid to watch over the exhibits or not. I don't want to upset Bones. I'd rather just track the guy down, take whatever passes and passwords he has and tell him to stay away or he's going to be prosecuted. We don't need to tell Bones about it. She's already lost her intern. She doesn't need to be told that one of her friends is a fake. You can just say he quit."

Cam knew that Booth and Brennan were in a new relationship and he might be worried that she might blame him if Micah was arrested for fraud and possibly prosecuted. "Let's let security find him first. Once we know what his motivation is for being here, then we'll worry about telling Dr. Brennan."

Relieved, Booth released Cam's hand. "Thanks."

Standing, Cam patted Booth's shoulder. "I'm going to go talk to Gary Stewart and tell him what's going on in his department. We'll try to get this straightened out as quickly as possible."

Ooooooooooooooooooooooo

Micah carried in to Brennan's office, two cups of coffee and two cinnamon rolls. "Hey Dr. Brennan, you need a break. It's almost ten."

"Oh, it's that late?" Brennan checked her watch and blushed. "I really am quite late. I promised Booth that I would leave here at eight. I'm amazed that he hasn't called me to fuss at me."

Placing the cup of coffee on her desk, Micah smiled. "Well drink some of the coffee so you'll be alert when you drive home."

Grateful, Brennan picked up the cup and sipped it. "Thank you. I didn't realize I was thirsty. I'm trying to finish up my report for Cam so that my weekend will not have to be interrupted by work. Booth wishes to drive to visit his grandfather this weekend and I want to go with him."

His cup of coffee almost to his lips, Micah paused. "So you and Agent Booth . . . how are you two getting along? I always thought you two would work it out sooner or later. You have a lot in common."

"We really don't, Micah." That fact worried her more than she liked to admit. "He's all heart and I'm rational. He's of above intelligence, but I'm a genius. He believes in love and I'm still not sure if I do."

"Superficial stuff, Doc." Micah waved his hand side to side. "Believe me, you guys really have a lot in common. I went to a lecture once and the speaker said that if you're confused about something, if you don't see the facts clearly, you should make a list and be truthful about what you write down. I think if you wrote a list you'd find out just how much Agent Booth and you have in common . . . you two are going to make it Dr. Brennan. I've been around a long time and I know that you two are meant to be in a relationship together . . . I got to go. Be careful driving home."

After the security guard left, Brennan finished her coffee, wrapped the cinnamon rolls in some tissues and placed them in her purse. She knew that Booth would eat them later.

Ooooooooooooooooo

Arriving at her apartment, Brennan found Booth sleeping on the couch. Since it was now 10:20, she shook him awake. "Booth it's getting late. Perhaps you should go to bed."

Groggy, Booth sat up, rubbed his eyes and glanced at his watch. "And you're just getting home? You said you'd be home by eight."

"I know and I would have, but Cam insisted that I complete the Thompson report before I leave." Brennan moved into the kitchen and retrieved a bottle of water from the fridge. "Micah reminded me what time it was when he brought me a cup of coffee."

"Micah does that a lot for you." It had been a week since he'd discovered that Micah didn't really work at the Jeffersonian and yet no one had been able to find him in the building during the hours that he supposedly work. It was ridiculous as far as Booth was concerned. "Um, how long as he been working there? Do you know?"

Twisting the cap on the bottle, Brennan paused before she drank some of the water. "I don't really know. He was working at the Jeffersonian when I started."

His lips pursed, Booth rubbed the back of his neck. "Okay . . . so are you still going with me to see Pops?"

"Yes, of course." Brennan drank most of the water in the bottle and twisted the cap back on. "I'm looking forward to it."

Oooooooooooooooooooo

A week later and still no one had been able to track down the man calling himself Micah Leggat. None of the techs at the FBI had been able to find out who he was or where he lived. The only one that admitted that she'd seen him was Brennan and that just made the head of the Security Department at the Jeffersonian furious. He berated his employees, he had a tech check all the recordings in the Jeffersonian and no one appeared on the footage that shouldn't. "I don't get it."

Cam was livid. "Gary this is not acceptable. We have a man pretending to be a guard here at the Jeffersonian who comes and goes as he pleases. This is beyond acceptable."

"I know, Dr. Saroyan." Gary was not giving up. "I'm going to start working nights until I catch this guy and I will catch him. Whoever he is he's making us look like fools."

Oooooooooooooooooooo

With little faith in the security department at the Jeffersonian, Booth decided to take matters into his own hand. After telling Brennan that he had to work a stakeout, Booth waited until midnight and entered the Lab. Once he was there, he sat down on the top steps of the platform and waited. He was determined to find out who Micah was and he was willing to give up some sleep to do it. The head of security had welcomed Booth's help. Gary Stewart intended to walk the halls for the next few hours and having Booth stake out the Lab would be a big help. His own men and women hadn't found Micah and he was no longer sure he could trust them on this case.

A few hours passed and while Booth sat on the steps, he read a book. The story becoming increasingly boring, Booth decided that he'd had enough and closed the book. As he placed it down next to him on the floor, he noticed a man walk around the platform and approach him.

"Hiya, Agent Booth." The man was wearing a security uniform and his credentials dangling from a lanyard, proclaimed him to be Micah Leggat.

Careful not to startle the man. Booth continued to sit where he was. "Micah Leggat?"

"Yeah." Micah smiled at the agent. "What are you doing here? Dr. Brennan isn't here."

"I know." Booth stared at the man and saw someone relaxed and confident. "Who are you? Your credentials say you're Micah Leggat, but no one with that name works at the Jeffersonian."

Amused, Micah chuckled. "Well not officially I suppose, but I do work here. At least I've never been fired that I know of."

"What's going on?" Booth didn't feel threatened in any way and he found that a little odd. Micah was not afraid and he wasn't concerned that Booth knew he didn't have any business there which was also odd. "Why are you pretending to be a security guard here? You're not getting paid. As far as Gary Spencer knows, no antiquities are missing from the exhibits or the basement storage areas. How are you getting into this building? Why is it no one has seen you except Dr. Brennan?"

His amusement continuing, Micah flashed Booth a broad smile. "Gosh that is certainly a lot of questions. You are very good at your job. I know that. You and Dr. Brennan have solved a lot of cases together. You're very impressive."

"Just answer the questions." Booth wasn't interested in compliments. He wanted answers.

"Alright." Micah leaned on the hand rail and nodded his head. "I'm not pretending to be anything. I really am a security guard. I was hired in 1967 by the Jeffersonian and I've been here ever since."

Booth stood up slowly and walked down the steps until he was facing Micah. "Really, I don't think so. You don't look older than 45 years old give or take a couple of years. If you were hired in 1967 you would have been at least 21 by then. That would make you at least 65 years old."

Micah slowly nodded his head. "You're sharp. I knew you were . . . Thank you for the compliment, but I was born in 1933. I was 34 when I was hired here and I was 48 when I died in 1981."

Startled, Booth took a step back. "You're telling me you're a ghost?" He wasn't afraid, but then ghosts weren't even on the list of things that scared him. "Bullshit."

His conversation had been very entertaining so far as he had known it would be. "No, just the truth . . . Are you afraid of me?"

Slowly shaking his head, Booth stood his ground. "No, I believe that ghosts exist, but I don't believe you're a ghost. You figured out we're looking for you and you're trying to bullshit your way out of trouble."

His lips pursed, Micah studied Booth for a few seconds. "I love the Jeffersonian. After my wife died of cancer I didn't have any family left and this place became really important to me. It houses some of the best scientific and cultural artifacts and relics in the world. It hires the best scientists in the world to work here. The Jeffersonian has classes and lectures for nominal fees for anyone interested in learning. I was really surprised and happy when they teamed up with the FBI to start investigating both cold cases and murder cases that were almost unsolvable. You guys had done great work . . . To tell you the truth, when I died I didn't want to leave. I love it here. I'm part of something bigger than myself. This place is beautiful and I've enjoyed every minute that I've been here."

Exhaling deeply, Booth finally shook his head. "Somehow I think you're trying to sell me a bill of goods. You are not a ghost. Sure the reasons you want to work here sounds right, but being a ghost. No."

With a sigh, Micah slowly faded from view. "You are a very stubborn man, Agent Booth."

His heart rate increasing, Booth stepped forward and waved his hand where Micah had been standing. "Damn it. Come back here."

Micah appeared a few feet away and laughed. "I'm impressed. You really aren't afraid of ghosts."

"No I'm not." Booth stared at the guard. "Why not move on? Why stay here?"

"I've already told you why." Micah shrugged his shoulders. "I love it here. I will leave someday, but right now I don't want to."

Curious, Booth sat back down on the steps leading back up to the platform. "Why is Bones the only one that sees you? No one else has admitted that they've seen you."

Grimly, Micah nodded his head. "Others have seen me. They just won't admit it. Dr. Brennan is special. She's so smart, a real genius. I love talking to her. She's honest and there is no façade. What you see is what you get. She's my favorite person around here. I talk to her when she works late and I make sure she eats and drinks something. No one else seems to care that she doesn't take care of herself."

Booth objected. "I sure as hell do."

"I know you do, now." Micah shook his head. "Before you, there was no one to check up on her but me. I've watched over the years and I know you've tried to watch out for her, but no one has watched over her like I have. She's a valuable asset to the Jeffersonian and it's my duty to make sure she takes care of herself. Maybe since you two are a couple now I can count on you to make sure she's okay . . . she loves you, you know."

"I know and I love her." Booth sighed. "I also know you can't push her too hard because she'll push back. I have to be careful not to push her too hard."

Sad that the agent didn't understand his partner, Micah sighed. "You both have been through a lot and believe me Agent Booth, she's not going to run away from you. She's stronger now. Her past caused her to lose faith in love and relationships. You've proved to her that she can trust you and she loves you enough to try to stick this relationship thing out. When she makes up her mind . . . well, she's like a train moving forward. She won't turn back. You should know that."

Booth nodded his head. "Yeah, she's strong now. She's not impervious anymore. She and I, we have something special together. I love her and I want to make her happy."

The sound of doors opening in the distance, alerted them both that they weren't alone now. "Just remember, she loves you. No matter how frustrated you get with things, she loves you . . . I'll see you around, Agent Booth." Micah faded away once more leaving Booth alone.

"Damn ghosts." Booth picked up his book and walked around the platform to meet Gary Stewart. "I'm going home, Gary. Good luck finding this guy. I don't think you're going to catch him and I have to be at work tomorrow at eight."

Frustrated, Gary shook his head. "I just don't get it. I really don't. It's like the man's a ghost or something."

Ooooooooooooooooooooo

Working on a cold case in Bones Storage, Brennan was staring intently at the mandible in her hand when she heard a sound a few feet away. "Micah, what are you doing here? You usually work at night."

Happy to see her, Micah stepped closer. "I'm going to a lecture before work tonight. It's been quite a few weeks since I've seen you. You aren't working late hours lately."

"Yes, that's true." Brennan placed the mandible down on the stainless steel table. "I find that having someone to go home to is an excellent incentive to leave earlier than I used to. Booth works long hours too, but he likes to be home by seven if he can help it. If I wish to eat dinner with him, then I have to leave here by seven."

Happy that his friend was doing well, Micah clasped his hands behind his back. "I'm glad you're happy Dr. Brennan. I don't know if Agent Booth told you, but I ran into him a couple of months ago. I introduced myself and we had a little chat. He's a nice guy. I like him. I'm glad you found someone like him to make you happy. Everyone deserves someone in their lives that will make them happy."

"I am happy." Brennan placed her hand over her slightly swollen stomach. "I'm going to have a baby. It's Booth's baby."

"Congratulations, Doc." Micah's smile was bright. "I'm really glad you two are working out. My wife died a long time ago and I still miss her. She was my best friend."

Brennan hadn't known about Micah's loss. "I'm sorry to hear of your loss. Booth is my best friend too."

"That means your relationship will last a long time, Dr. Brennan." Micah pointed over his shoulder. "I have a lecture to go to. I'll see you around Doc."

"Bye." Brennan watched her friend leave the room and smiled. When she had been lonely in the past, Micah had always been there to make her a little less so. Now that she had Booth in her life, she knew that she didn't need Micah's visits as much as she had used to. Still it is always nice to visit with old friends.

Ooooooooooooooooooooo

Let me know what you think of my story. Thank you.


End file.
